CHAPTER 11.

MATRICES I
11A WHAT IS A MATRIX?
VCAA 2016 E XAM 1 Q UESTION 1

The transpose of
[ 132 7 10
19 8
is
]
A.
[ 132 19 8
7 10 ] B.
[ 108 7 2
19 13 ] C.
2 13

[ ]
7 19
10 8

13 2 8 10
D.
[ ]
19 7
8 10
E.
[ ]
19 7
13 2

VCAA 2016 E XAM 1 Q UESTION 5

Let M =
[ 13 2 3 4
4 5 6
.
]
The element in row i and column j of M is m ij.
The elements of M are determined by the rule

A. m ij =i+ j−1
B. m ij =2i− j+1
C. m ij =2i+ j−2
D. m ij =i+ 2 j−2
E. m ij =i+ j +1

VCAA 2016 E XAM 2 Q UESTION 1 A (1 MARK )

A travel company arranges flight ( F ), hotel ( H ), performance ( P) and tour (T ) bookings.
Matrix C contains the number of each type of each booking for a month.

85 F
C= 38
24
43
[] G
P
T

Write down the order of Matrix C . (1 mark)

VCAA NHT 2017 E XAM 1 Q UESTION 4

The element in row i and column j of matrix M is m ij.
The elements in matrix M are determined using the rule m ij =2i + j.
Matrix M could not be

[ 3] [ 3 4 5]
A. B.
[ 35 46] 3 3 4 5

[ ]
C.

1
D.
[]
4
5
6
E. 5 6 7
7 8 9
2
VCAA NHT 2017 E XAM 2 Q UESTION 1 (1 MARK )
People pay to attend concerts at the Whiteoak Theatre.
They can choose their seats for each concert from three classes, A , B or C .
The table below shows the number of seats available in each class and the cost per seat.

The column matrix N contains the number of seats in each class.

100 A

[ ]
N= 340 B
160 C

What is the order of matrix N? (1 mark)

VCAA NHT 2018 E XAM 1 Q UESTION 1

The matrix

1 0 0

[ ]5 1 0
8 5 1

is an example of a

A. unit matrix
B. diagonal matrix
C. triangular matrix
D. symmetric matrix
E. communication matrix

VCAA NHT 2018 E XAM 2 Q UESTION 1 A (1 MARK )

A region has four districts: North ( N ), South ( S), East ( E ) and West (W ).
Farmers from each district attended a conference in 2017.

Matrix F 2017 below shows the number of farmers from each of these four districts who attended the 2017 conference.

What is the order of matrix F 2017? (1 mark)

3
11B U SING MATRICES TO REPRESENT INFORMATION
VCAA 21017 E XAM 1 Q UESTION 1
Kai has a pert-time job. Each week he earns money and saves some of this money.

The matrix below shows the amounts earned ( E ) and saved ( S), in dollars, in each of three weeks.

How much did Kai save in Week 2?

A. $80
B. $90
C. $100
D. $170
E. $270

VCAA 2017 E XAM 2 Q UESTION 1 AB (2 MARKS )

A school canteen sells pies ( P), rolls ( R ) and sandwiches ( S).

The number of each item sold over three school weeks is shown in Matrix M.

a. In total, how many sandwiches were sold in these three weeks? (1 mark)

The element in row i and column j of matrix M is m ij.

b. What does the element m 12 indicate? (1 mark)

4
5
VCAA NHT 2018 E XAM 2 Q UESTION 1 AB (2 MARKS )
A region has four districts: North ( N ), South ( S), East ( E ) and West (W ).
Farmers from each district attended a conference in 2017.

Matrix F 2017 below shows the number of farmers from each of these four districts who attended the 2017 conference.

a. What is the order of matrix F 2017? (1 mark)

b. How many of these farmers came from either the North or South district? (1 mark)

VCAA NHT 2018 E XAM 2 Q UESTION 3 A (1 MARK )

Three farmers, A , B and C , each placed orders for three types of fertilisers for their cornfields.

The types of fertilisers are Kalm ( K ), Nitro ( N ) and Phate ( P).

The matrix below shows the amount of fertiliser, in tonnes, ordered by Farmer A and Farmer B.

Farmer A and Farmer B each paid a total of $1600 for fertiliser.

What conclusion can be drawn about the prices of Nitro ( N ) and Phate ( P)? (1 mark)

6
11C MATRIX ARITHMETIC: ADDITION, SUBTRACTION AND SCALAR MULTIPLICATION
VCAA NHT 2017 E XAM 1 Q UESTION 1

[ 41 25]+3 [ 41 25] is equal to

A.
[ 82 104 ] B.
[ 115 131 ]
C.
[ 164 208 ] D.
[ 246 1230]
E.
[ 3831 3440]
VCAA 2017 E XAM 1 Q UESTION 6
The table below shows information about two matrices, A and B.

The element in the row i and column j of matrix A is a ij.

The element in the row i and column j of matrix B is b ij.
The sum A+ B is

5 7 9 5 8 11
A.
[ ]
8 10 12
11 13 15
B.
[ ]
7 10 13
9 12 15
3 6 9 3 3 3
C.
[ ]
3 6 9
3 6 9
D.
[ ]
6 6 6
9 9 9
3 6 3
E.
[ ]
6 3 9
3 9 3

VCAA NHT 2018 E XAM 1 Q UESTION 2

Consider the matrix equation below

2× [ 34 −10 ]+W =[ 67 20]

Which of the following is matrix W ?

A.
[ 01 −22 ] B.
[−10 22]
C.
[ 01 −2
−2 ]
D.
[ 1215 −22 ]
E.
[ 1215 −2
−2 ]

7
8
11D M ATRIX ARITHMETIC : THE PRODUCT OF TWO MATRICES
VCAA 2016 E XAM 1 Q UESTION 4
The table below shows the number of each type of coin saved in a moneybox

The matrix product that displays the total number of coins and the total value of these coins is

15 1 5
A. [ 5 10 20 50 ]
32
48
24
[] B. [ 15 32 48 24 ]
1 10
1 20
1 50
[ ]
1 15 5
C. [ 5 10 20 50 ]
1
1
1
[ ] 32
48
24
D. [ 15 32 48 24 ]
10
20
50
[]
1
E.
[ 5 10 20 50 1
15 32 48 24 1 ][ ]
1

VCAA 2016 E XAM 2 Q UESTION 1 (3 MARKS )

A travel company arranges flight ( F ), hotel ( H ), performance ( P) and tour (T ) bookings.
Matrix C contains the number of each type of each booking for a month.

85 F
C=
[]
38
24
43
G
P
T

a. Write down the order of Matrix C . (1 mark)

A booking fee, per person, is collected by the travel company for each type of booking.
Matrix G contains the booking fees, in dollars, per booking.

¿
b. i. Calculate the matrix product J=G ×C . (1 mark)

ii. What does matrix J represent? (1 mark)

9
10
VCAA NHT 2017 E XAM 1 Q UESTION 2
The cost of fruit at a stall, in dollars per kilogram, is shown in the table below.

Sean wants to buy 2 kg of apples, 1 kg of pears and 3 kg of bananas.

Which one of the following matrix products will result in a matrix that contains the total cost of Sean’s fruit purchase, in
dollars?

2.50
A.
[ ]
[ 2 1 3 ] 3.20
1.90
B. [ 2 1 3 ][ 2.50 3.20 1.90 ]

2 2.50 2 0 0 2.50
C.
[ ][ ]
1 3.20
3 1.90
D.
[ ][ ]
0 1 0 3.20
0 0 3 1.90
2.50
E.
[ ]
3.20 [ 2 1 3 ]
1.90

VCAA NHT 2017 E XAM 1 Q UESTION 8

Matrix A is an n × n matrix where n>1 .
Matrix R is a row matrix.
Matrix C is a column matrix.

Which one of the matrix products below could result in a 1 ×1 matrix?

A. ACR
B. ARC
C. CAR
D. RAC
E. RCA

11
VCAA NHT 2017 E XAM 2 Q UESTION 1 (4 MARKS )
People pay to attend concerts at the Whiteoak Theatre.
They can choose their seats for each concert from three classes, A , B or C .
The table below shows the number of seats available in each class and the cost per seat.

The column matrix N contains the number of seats in each class.

100 A

[ ]
N= 340 B
160 C

a. What is the order of matrix N? (1 mark)

b. Matrix W contains the cost of each class of seat in the theatre.

A B C
W =[ 45 35 30 ]
¿
i. Determine the matrix product WN . (1 mark)

ii. Explain what the matrix product WN represents. (1 mark)

c. The number of seats that were sold for the first concert this year is shown in the table below.

The information in the table is used to construct the matrix P, shown below.
42 0 0 45

[
P= 0 179 0 35
0 0 86 30 ][ ]
Matrix P contains the value of all seats in each class, in dollars, that were sold for the first concert this year. A matrix
product MP is found where M =[ 0 1 1 ] .

Explain what the matrix product MP represents. (1 mark)

12
VCAA NHT 2018 E XAM 1 Q UESTION 5
The target in a game is a circle divided into three regions: inner, middle and outer.

The diagram below shows these regions and the number of points awarded for hitting each region with a ball.

The number of the inner, middle and outer regions hit by Mustafa and Neville in the game is shown in the table below.

Neville was the winner of this game. Which of the following matrix calculations shows the difference between the winning and
losing scores?

8 8
A.
[]
3 × ( [ 5 9 7 ] −[ 6 7 2 ])
1
B.
[]
[ 5 9 7 ] −[ 6 7 2 ] × 3
1
8 5 6
C. ( [ 5 9 7 ] −[ 6 7 2 ] ) × 3
1 [] D.
([ ] [ ])
9 − 7 × [ 8 3 1]
7 2

8 8
E.
[]
3
1
× [ 5 9 7 ] −
1 []
3 × [ 6 7 2]

VCAA NHT 2018 E XAM 2 Q UESTION 1 (4 MARKS )

A region has four districts: North ( N ), South ( S), East ( E ) and West (W ).
Farmers from each district attended a conference in 2017.

Matrix F 2017 below shows the number of farmers from each of these four districts who attended the 2017 conference.

a. What is the order of matrix F 2017? (1 mark)

13
 b. How many of these farmers came from either the North or South district? (1 mark)

The table below shows the cost per farmer, for each district, to attend the 2017 conference.

c. Write down a matrix that could be multiplied by matrix F 2017 to give the total cost for all the farmers who attended
the 2017 conference. (1 mark)

d. The number of farmers who attended the 2018 conference increased by 25% for each district from the previous year.

Complete the product below with a scalar so that the product gives the number of farmers from each district who
attended the 2018 conference. (1 mark)

14
11F BINARY, PERMUTATION , COMMUNICATION AND DOMINANCE MATRICES
VCAA 2016 E XAM 1 Q UESTION 2
0 0 0 1 0 L

[ ][]
0
The matrix product 1
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0

0
1
E
0 × A is equal to
P
S

L L P P P

A.
[] [] []
A
P
S
E
B.
E
A
P
S
C.
L
E
A
S
D.
[]
A
L
E
S
E.
[]
E
A
L
S

VCAA 2017 E XAM 1 Q UESTION 4

F S

Matrix P is
E

R
S
A

E
R
[] []
A permutation matrix, P, can be used to turn A into F .

0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1

A.
[ ] 0
1
0
1
0
1
1
0
1
0
0
0
1
0
0
1
0
0
1
0
B.
[ ]
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
C.
[ ]
0
1
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0

1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1

D.
[ ] 0
1
0
0
1
0
1
0
1
1
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
1
E.
[ ]
0
0
1
0
0
1
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0

VCAA NHT 2018 E XAM 1 Q UESTION 3

Hayley uses the password H8$P@2 to unlock her computer.

She uses a permutation matrix to scramble this password, as shown in the matrix product below.

Which one of the following is the scrambled password?

A. 2@PH$8
B. H8$P@2
15
C. P@2H$8
D. P2@$8H
E. P8@$2H

16
VCAA 2016 E XAM 2 Q UESTION 2 (2 MARKS )
The travel company has five employees, Amara ( A ), Ben ( B), Cheng (C ), Dana ( D ) and Elka ( E ).

The company allows each employee to send a direct message to another employee only as shown in the communication
matrix G below.

The matrix G 2 is also shown below.

The ‘1’ in row E , column D of matrix G indicates that Elka ( sender ) can send a direct message to Dana (receiver ).
The ‘0’ in row E , column C of matrix G indicates that Elka cannot send a direct message to Cheng.

a. To whom can Dana send a direct message? (1 mark)

b. Cheng needs to send a message to Elka, but cannot do this directly.

Write down the names of the employees who can send the message from Cheng directly to Elka. (1 mark)

VCAA NHT 2017 E XAM 1 Q UESTION 3

Peter ( P), Sally ( S) and Ben ( B) are managers in a business.

The diagram at right shows the direct communication that is possible between these
managers and a worker, Whitney (W ).

For example, the arrow from S to W indicates that Sally is able to communicate directly with
Whitney.
A communication matrix can represent the direct communication that is possible
between the managers and Whitney. The elements in the matrix are such that:
 ‘1’ indicates that direct communication from one person to another is possible
 ‘0’ indicates that direct communication is not possible.
This communication matrix could be

A. B. C.
P 0 1 1 1 P 0 1 2 1 P 0 1 1 1

¿
S
P S B W ¿
B
W
¿

[ ]
0
1
0
0
1
1
1
0
0
1 ¿
0
0
¿

¿
S
P S B W ¿
B
W
[ ]
1
2
1
0
2
2
2
0
1
2 ¿
1
0
¿

¿
S
P S B W ¿
B
W
[ ]
0
1
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
1 ¿
0
0

D. E.
P 0 1 1 1 P 0 0 1 0

¿
S
P S B W ¿
B
W
¿

[ ]
1
1
1
0
1
1
1
0
1
1 ¿
1
0
¿

¿
S
P S B W ¿
B
W
[ ]
1
1
1
0
1
1
1
0
0
1 ¿
0
0

17
VCAA 2017 E XAM 1 Q UESTION 2
The matrix below shows how five people, Alan ( A ), Bevan ( B), Charlie (C ), Drew ( D ) and Esther ( E ), can communicate with
each other.

A ‘1’ in the matrix shows that the person named in that row can send a message directly to the person named in that column.
For example, the ‘1’ in row 3 and column 4 shows that Charlie can send a message directly to Drew.
Esther wants to send a message to Bevan.
Which one of the following shows the order of people through which the message is sent?
A. Esther – Bevan
B. Esther – Charlie – Bevan
C. Esther – Charlie – Alan – Bevan
D. Esther – Charlie – Drew – Bevan
E. Esther – Charlie – Drew – Alan – Bevan

VCAA 2016 E XAM 1 Q UESTION 8

The matrix below shows the result of each match between four teams, A , B , C and D , in a bowling tournament. Each tea
played each other once and there were no draws;

In this tournament, each team was given a ranking that was determined by calculating the sum of its one-step and two-step
dominances. The team with the highest sum was ranked number one (1). The team with the second-highest sum was ranked
number two (2), and so on.

Using this method, team C was ranked number one (1).

Team A would have been ranked number one (1) if the winner of one match had lost instead.
That match was between teams

A. A and B
B. A and D
C. B and C
D. B and D
E. C and D

18
VCAA NHT 2017 E XAM 1 Q UESTION 7
A badminton competition is held between four players, Amanda ( A ), Ben ( B), Carlos (C ) and Darius ( D ). In the competition,
each player competes in one game with each of the other three players. The matrix S2 below shows the two-step dominance
that each player has over the other players.

From the matrix above, which one of the following events must have occurred during the competition?

A. Ben beat Amanda

B. Ben beat Carlos
C. Carlos beat Amanda
D. Darius beat Amanda
E. Darius beat Carlos

VCAA 2017 E XAM 1 Q UESTION 5

Four teams, A , B, C and D , competed in a round-robin competition where each team played each of the other teams once.
There were no draws.

The results are shown in the matrix below.

A ‘1’ in the matrix shows that the team named in that row defeated the team named in that column.
For example, the ‘1’ in row 2 shows that team B defeated team A .
In this matrix, the values of f, g and h are

A. f =0 , g=1 , h=0
B. f =0 , g=1 , h=1
C. f =1 , g=0 , h=0
D. f =1 , g=1 , h=0
E. f =1 , g=1 , h=1

19
VCAA NHT 2018 E XAM 1 Q UESTION 4
The diagram below shows the results of a chess competition between four players: Asha ( A ), Bai ( B), Cam (C ) and Drika ( D ).

Each competitor played each of the other competitors only once.

The arrows in the diagram indicate the winner of each match.

For example, the arrow from A to C shows that Asha defeated Cam.
The two-step dominances in this competition can be shown as a matrix where the winner is the person who has two-step
dominance over the loser.
The matrix that shows the two-step dominances is

A. B. C.
A 0 0 0 0 A 0 0 0 0 A 0 0 1 0
A B C
¿
¿ B
D ¿
C
D
[ ]
0
0
1
0
0
0
1
0
2
0 ¿
0
0
A B C
¿
¿ B
D ¿
C
D
[ ]
0
0
1
0
0
1
1
0
1
0 ¿
0
0
A B C
¿
¿ B
D ¿
C
D
[ ]
1
0
1
0
0
1
1
0
1
0 ¿
0
0

D. E.
A 0 0 1 0 A 0 0 1 0
A B C
¿
¿
D
B¿
C
D
[ ]
1
0
2
0
0
1
2
0
3
0 ¿
0
0
A B C
¿
¿
D
B¿
C
D
[ ]
1
0
2
0
0
1
2
0
2
0 ¿
0
0

VCAA NHT 2018 E XAM 2 Q UESTION 2 (2 MARKS )

Five farmers, A , B, C , D and E , attended the 2018 conference.
Pairs of these farmers had previously attended one or more conferences together. The number of conferences previously
attended together is shown in matrix M below.

For example, the ‘1’ in the bottom row shows that D and E had attended one earlier conference together.

a. Which two farmers had not previously attended a conference together? (1 mark)

b. What do the numbers in column D indicate? (1 mark)

20
CHAPTER 12. MATRICES II
12B A PPLICATIONS OF THE INVERSE MATRIX: SOLVING SIMULTANEOUS LINEAR EQUATIONS
VCAA 2016 E XAM 1 Q UESTION 3
The matrix equation below represents a pair of simultaneous linear equations.

[ 12m 93][ xy]=[66 ]

These simultaneous linear equations have no unique solution when m is equal to

A. −4 B. −3 C. 0 D. 3 E. 4

VCAA NHT 2017 E XAM 1 Q UESTION 5

Yvette needs to buy a total of nine pens and markers.
Five pens and four markers will cost $31.00
Four pens and five markers will cost $32.00
Let p be the cost of a pen.
Let m be the cost of a marker.
Consider the following matrix equations

How many of the matrix equations above could Yvette solve to get a matrix that contains the price of a pen and the price of a
marker?

A. 0 B. 1 C. 2 D. 3 E. 4

21
VCAA 2017 E XAM 1 Q UESTION 3
Which one of the following equations has a unique solution?

A.
[ 11 11][ xy ]=[ 102 ] B.
[−46 −64 ][ xy ]=[ 6036] C.
[ 84 −42 ][ xy ]=[1218]
D.
[ 75 00][ xy ]=[ 1415] E.
[ 46 −2 x 36
−3 ][ y ] [ 24 ]
=

VCAA 2017 E XAM 2 Q UESTION 1 (4 MARKS )

A school canteen sells pies ( P), rolls ( R ) and sandwiches ( S).

The number of each item sold over three school weeks is shown in matrix M.

a. In total, how many sandwiches were sold in these three weeks? (1 mark)

The element in row i and column j of matrix M is m ij.

b. What does the element m 12 indicate? (1 mark)

c. Consider the matrix equation

35 24 60 a 491.55

[ ][ ] [ ]
28 32 43 b = 428.00
32 30 56 c 487.60

where a=¿ cost of one pie, b=¿cost of one roll and c=¿cost of one sandwich.

i. What is the cost of one sandwich? (1 mark)

ii. The matrix equation below shows that the total value of all rolls and sandwiches sold in these
three weeks is $915.60.
491.55

[ ]
L × 428.00 = [ 915.60 ]
487.60
Matrix L in this equation is of order 1 ×3.
22
 Write down matrix L. (1 mark)

VCAA NHT 2018 E XAM 1 Q UESTION 6

The solution to a system of simultaneous equations is determined by evaluating the matrix product

[ xy ]=[−43 −23 ][−13 ]

One of these linear equations could be

A. −4 x+3 y =3
B. −4 x−2 y=3
C. 2 x+3 y =3
D. 3 x+ 3 y =−1
E. 3 x=4 y=3

VCAA NHT 2018 E XAM 2 Q UESTION 3

Three farmers, A , B and C , each placed orders for three types of fertilisers for their cornfields.

The types of fertilisers are Kalm ( K ), Nitro ( N ) and Phate ( P).

The matrix below shows the amount of fertiliser, in tonnes, ordered by Farmer A and Farmer B.

a. Farmer A and Farmer B each paid a total of $16 000 for fertiliser.
What conclusion can be drawn about the prices of Nitro ( N ) and Phate ( P)? (1 mark)

Let x be the price per tonne of Kalm ( K )

y be the price per tonne of Nitro ( N )
z be the price per tonne of Phate ( P)

The total cost of these two orders can be summarised by the matrix equation

x
[ 2 4 2
2 5 1
y=
z
][ ] [
16 000
16 000 ]
b. Explain why this equation cannot be solved using the matrix inverse method. (1 mark)

23
24
c. The matrix equation below shows the fertilisers orders for all three farmers.
2 4 2 x 16 000

[ ][ ] [ ]
2 5 1 y = 16 000
1 1 1 z
i.
6500
Complete the matrix equation below by filling in the missing elements. (1 mark)

ii. Determine the cost, in dollars, of one tonne of Phate ( P). (1 mark)

25
12C TRANSITION MATRICES AND THEIR APPLICATIONS
VCAA 2016 E XAM 1 Q UESTION 6
Families in a country town were asked about their annual holidays.
Every year, these families choose between staying at home ( H ), travelling (T ) and camping (C ).
The transition diagram below shows the way families in the town change their holiday preferences from year to
year.

A transition matrix that provides the same information as the transition diagram is

¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿
H T C ¿ H T C ¿ H T C ¿
0.30 0.75 0.65 ¿¿ 0.30 0.30 0.40 ¿¿ 0.30 0.30 0.40 ¿¿
A.

[ 0.75
0.65
0.50
0.20
0.20
0.60 ] ¿
B.

[ 0.45
0.25
0.50 0
0.20 0.60 ] ¿
C.

[ 0.45
0.25
0.50
0.20
0.20
0.60 ] ¿

¿ ¿ ¿ ¿
H T C ¿ H T C ¿
0.30 0.30 0.40 ¿¿ 0.30 0.45 0.25 ¿¿
D.

[ 0.45
0.25
0.50
0.20
0.20
0.40 ] ¿
E.

[ 0.30 0.50
0.40 0
0.20
0.60 ] ¿

VCAA 2017 E XAM 2 Q UESTION 2 A (1 MARK )

Junior students at this school must choose one elective activity in each of the four terms in 2018. Students can
choose from the areas of performance ( P), sport ( S) and technology (T ). The transition diagram below shows
the way in which junior students are expected to change their choice of elective activity from term to term.

Of the junior students who choose performance ( P) in one term, what percentage are expected to choose sport (
S) the next term?

26
VCAA 2016 E XAM 1 Q UESTION 7
Each week, the 300 students at a primary school choose art ( A ), music ( M ) or sport ( S) as an afternoon activity.
The transition matrix below shows how the students’ choices change from week to week.

Based on the information above, it can be concluded that, in the long term

A. no student will choose sport.

B. all students will choose to stay in the same activity each week.
C. all students will have chosen to change their activity at least once.
D. more students will choose to do music than sport.
E. the number of students choosing to do art and music will be the same.

VCAA 2016 E XAM 2 Q UESTION 3 (4 MARKS )

The travel company is studying the choice between air ( A ), land ( L), sea ( S) or no ( N ) travel by some of its
customers each year. Matrix T , shown below, contains the percentages of customers who are expected to change
their choice of travel from year to year.

Let Sn be the matrix that shows the number of customers who choose each type of travel n years after 2014.
Matrix S0 below shows the number of customers who chose each type of travel in 2014.

Matrix S1 below shows the number of customers who chose each type of travel in 2015.

a. Write the values missing from matrix S1 (d , e , f ) in the boxes provided below. (1 mark)

b. Write a calculation that shows that 478 customers were expected to choose air travel in 2015. (1 mark)

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 c. Consider the customers who chose sea travel in 2014. How many of these customers were expected to
choose sea travel in 2015? (1 mark)

d. Consider the customers who were expected to choose air travel in 2015. What percentage of these
customers had also chosen air travel in 2014? Round your answer to the nearest whole number. (1
mark)

VCAA NHT 2017 E XAM 1 Q UESTION 6

Students at a school choose an afternoon activity every week. They can choose either sport ( S), art ( A ) or music
( M ). The table below shows the number of students who chose sport, art and music in Week 1 of the school
term.

The students are expected to change the activity they choose from week to week as shown in the transition
matrix P below.

Which one of the following statements is true for this situation?

A. 30% of the students will never choose art.

B. The number of students who choose music will decrease every week.
C. The number of students who choose sport in one week will always be 20% less than the number of
students who chose sport in the previous week.
D. In Week 3 of the school term, the number of students who choose music will be less than half the
number of students who choose art.
E. In the long term, the number of students who choose music will be more than the number of students
who choose art.

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VCAA NHT 2017 E XAM 2 Q UESTION 2 (6 MARKS )
The Whiteoak Theatre Club has 200 members who buy tickets for every concert.
The members can choose seats from three different classes, A , B or C .
For each concert, the choice of seat class for these members can be determined using the transition matrix T ,
shown below.

a. An incomplete transition diagram for matrix T is shown below.

Complete the transition diagram above by adding all the missing information. (2 marks)
(Answer on the transition diagram above.)

b. The number of seats in each class chosen by these members for the final concert this year is shown in
matrix S0 below.

What percentage of these members chose A class seats for the final concert this year? (1 mark)

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For the first concert next year, some members will choose a different seat class from the seat class that they
chose for the final concert this year.

c. What percentage of the 200 members are expected to change from B class seats at the final concert this
year to A class seats for the first concert next year? (1 mark)

The expected number of these members and their choice of seat class for the nth concert next year can be
determined using the recurrence relation

d. Write down the state matrix, S1, for the expected number of members and their choice of seat class for
the first concert next year. Write your answer correct to one decimal place. (1 mark)

e. In the long term, how many members would be expected to buy B class seats for a concert? (1 mark)

VCAA 2017 E XAM 1 Q UESTION 8

Consider the matrix recurrence relation below.

Matrix T is a regular transition matrix.

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A. W > Z
33 []
Given the above and that S1= 16 , which one of the following expressions is not true?

B. Y > X
C. V >Y
D. V +W + Z=1
E. X +Y + Z >1

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VCAA 2017 E XAM 2 Q UESTION 2 (3 MARKS )
Junior students at this school must choose one elective activity in each of the four terms in 2018.
Students can choose from the areas of performance ( P), sport ( S) and technology (T ).
The transition diagram below shows the way in which junior students are expected to change their choice of
elective activity from term to term.

a. Of the junior students who choose performance ( P) in one term, what percentage are expected to
choose sport ( S) the next term? (1 mark)

Matrix J 1 lists the number of junior students who will be in each elective activity in Term 1.
300 P

[ ]
J 1= 240
210
S
T
b. 306 junior students are expected to choose sport (S) in Term 2.
Complete the calculation below to show this. (1 mark)

c. In Term 4, how many junior students in total are expected to participate in performance ( P) or sport ( S
) or technology (T )? (1 mark)

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VCAA 2017 E XAM 2 Q UESTION 3 (5 MARKS )
Senior students at this school will also choose one elective activity in each of the four terms in 2018.
Their choices are communication (C ), investigation ( I ), problem-solving ( P) and service ( S).
The transition matrix T shows the way in which senior students are expected to change their choice of elective
activity from term to term.

Let Sn be the state matrix for the number of senior students expected to choose each elective activity in Term n .
For the given matrix S1, a matrix rule that can be used to predict the number of senior students in each elective
activity in Terms 2, 3 and 4 is

a. How many senior students will not change their elective activity from Term 1 to Term 2? (1 mark)

b. Complete S2, the state matrix for Term 2 below. (1 mark)

c. Of the senior students expected to choose investigation (I) in Term 3, what percentage choose service
(S) in Term 2? (2 marks)

d. What is the maximum number of senior students expected in investigation (I) at any time during 2018?
(1 mark)

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VCAA NHT 2018 E XAM 1 Q UESTION 7&8
A company has selected 200 of its regular customers to rate its performance every month.
The rating given by a customer can be poor ( P), good (G ) or excellent ( E ).
Customers are expected to change their rating from month to month as shown in the transition matrix T below.

The expected number of each rating received after n months can be determined by the recurrence relation

where S0 is the state matrix for January.

Q UESTION 7
What percentage of these 200 customers are not expected to change their rating in February?

A. 28%
B. 40%
C. 43%
D. 56%
E. 80%

Q UESTION 8
In the long term, the number of these 200 customers who are expected to change their rating each month from
excellent to good is closest to

A. 28
B. 60
C. 66
D. 88
E. 92

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VCAA 2016 E XAM 2 Q UESTION 3 E (3 MARKS )
In 2016, the number of customers studied was increased to 1360.

Matrix R2016 , shown below, contains the number of these customers who choose each type of travel in 2016.

The company intends to increase the number of customers in the study in 2017 and in 2018.

The matrix that contains the number of customers who are expected to choose each type of travel in 2017 ( R2017
) and 2018 ( R2018 ) can be determined using the matrix equations shown below.

i. The element in the fourth row of matrix B is −80 .

Explain this number in the context of selecting customers for the studies in 2017 and 2018. (1 mark)

ii. Determine the number of customers who are expected to choose sea travel in 2018.
Round your answer to the nearest whole number. (2 marks)

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VCAA NHT 2017 E XAM 2 Q UESTION 2 F (2 MARKS )
The Whiteoak Theatre Club has 200 members who buy tickets for every concert.
The members can choose seats from three different classes, A , B or C .
For each concert, the choice of seat class for these members can be determined using the transition matrix T ,
shown below.

It is expected that, beginning from the third concert next year, the Whiteoak Theatre Club will have more
members.
Ten new members are expected at every new concert.
For their first concert, new members will not be given a seat choice.
Matrix K 2 contains the expected number of members in each class of seat for the second concert next year.
The expected number of members in each class of seat for the third and fourth concerts next year can be
determined by

Determine the number of members who are expected to choose A class seats for the fourth concert next year.
Round your answer to the nearest whole number. (2 marks)

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VCAA 2017 E XAM 1 Q UESTION 7
At a fish farm:
 young fish (Y) may eventually grow into juveniles (J) or they may die (D)
 juveniles (J) may eventually grow into adults (A) or they may die (D)
 adults (A) eventually die (D)

The initial state of the population, F 0, is shown below.

Every month, fish are either sold or bought so that the number of young, juvenile and adult fish in the farm
remains constant.

The population of fish in the fish farm after n months, F n, can be determined by the recurrence rule

where B is a column matrix that shows the number of young, juvenile and adult fish bought or sold each month
and the number of dead fish that are removed.
Each month the fish farm will
A. Sell 1650 adult fish
B. Buy 1750 adult fish
C. Sell 17 500 young fish
D. Buy 50 000 young fish
E. Buy 10 000 juvenile fish

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VCAA NHT 2018 E XAM 2 Q UESTION 4 (2 MARKS )
Areas of farmland in the region are allocated to growing barley ( B), corn (C ) and wheat (W ).
This allocation of farmland is to be changed each year, beginning in 2019.
The table shows the areas of farmland, in hectares, allocated to each drop in 2018 (n=0) and 2019 (n=1).

The planned annual change to the area allocated to each crop can be modelled by

H n represents the state matrix that shows the area allocated to each crop n years after 2018.
Q is a matrix that contains additional fixed charges to the area that is allocated to each crop each year.
Complete H 2, the state matrix for 2020.

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